As a nerd on ninja and samurai, I was naturally intrigued when Brian Fire messaged me about his crowdfunding campaign to produce a graphic novel for The Ninja Rain – Tale of the Seven. What did the project involve? And how serious was he in making this a success?
What is ‘The Ninja Rain – Tale of the Seven’ about?
The Ninja Rain – Tale of the Seven is a story about two warriors, a ninja and samurai, whose tragic backstories led them to making a suicide pact by drinking to their deaths. Yet, circumstances halted their plans to die when they accidentally freed a woman whose supernatural ability to fight using energy darts made her a target.
With renewed sense of purpose, both of our warriors needed to protect and reunite the captive lady warrior to her other six sisters with similar ability… Or risk having her captured and used as a tool in this war-torn land.
Brian Fire, Creator of ‘The Ninja Rain – Tale of the Seven’
Growing up in a time when martial arts and kung fu movies were in vogue, Brian who works as a freelance writer and visual effects artist, wants to fill the gap in media with his story of martial arts fantasy and believes that the time is ripe for it. I agree.
Based on his IndieGoGo page, the plot outline seems to be settled and he has even made eventual plans to take this project to the next stage – to turn The Ninja Rain – Tale of the Seven into a TV series. What’s impressive is his dedication to make it come to fruition; he has researched and scouted filming locations and decided on the cast.
Thoughts & Attention to Detail
What makes a story believable, even in the realms of martial arts fantasy is a well thought-out plot and the historical/cultural plausibility on which a story sets its foundation. While there are many intricacies and societal norms in feudal Japan and warrior culture that vastly differs to modern societal ideals, they wouldn’t be relevant to this work of fiction.
However, there is a possible warrior culture oddity in the plot that could be addressed within the graphic novel.
Bushido, the samurai warriors’ code, is clear on choosing death over sullying one’s honour. Death in the form of Sepukku was preferred in the Edo era and epitomises honourable death. Nonetheless, there are other forms of reported suicide pacts, such as mutual plans to drown oneself in the river (this I suspect was in exceptional circumstances). But drinking to death is unusual, especially when consciously chosen as a means of suicide by a samurai, whose entire life and code idealises decisive and honourable death, even if he were a grieving ronin.
Of course, The Ninja Rain – Tale of the Seven is a work of fiction where rules of an alternate universe apply. Divergence from historical facts to further the plot is to be expected. Yet, if a plausible explanation is provided in the graphic novel as to why the samurai warrior had chosen drinking as a form of death for his suicide pact, it indicates an attentive blending of history, culture and fiction. This would certainly win the hearts of history and martial arts film aficionados and create a nerdish following not unlike Harry Potter, Naruto and other successful series.
Whether or not this is addressed though, this is a minor oddity that will not take away from the plot essentials and I will look forward to seeing the graphic novel being produced in the first stage.
Support Brian’s Crowdfunding Campaign
Brian and his team are clearly committed to this project and intends to go ahead without full funding. However, this would mean a longer production time. So, please support this crowdfunding campaign in any way you can.
While there are other avenues to finance the making of the graphic novel and eventually the television series, it potentially involves losing creative control over the story. This is Brian’s story. Let’s help him in his goal and be a part of the potential making of the next ‘Games of Thrones’.
